Crew members on passenger vessel Spirit of Norfolk (IMO 8861618) checked the engine room of the ship every 30 minutes as a safety precaution and had done so shortly before a fire broke out, the captain of the ship testified on Friday January 27th, the second day of a US Coast Guard formal hearing...
Marine Hull
US Coast Guard takes aim at AIS-disabling fishing vessels
The Columbia River unit of the US Coast Guard has taken action against fishing vessels that turn off their AIS in order to keep secret the location of their crab pots. Operating “dark” is a common procedure in the Northwest’s coastal fisheries because fishers do not want their rivals to know where...
Jin Tian death toll rises to eight
The death toll after the sinking of general cargo ship Jin Tian (IMO 9578713) in icy waters on January 25th has climbed by two to eight. The dead included six Chinese sailors, according to the Chinese consul general, who was speaking in Fukuoka, Japan, on January 26th. Several Japanese Coast Guard...
https://insurancemarinenews.com/insurance-marine-news/jin-tian-death-toll-rises-to-eight/
Marine accident round-up : 30th January 2023
Container ship MOL Treasure (IMO 9773222) broke down in Southampton waters, UK, during the afternoon of January 26th and was being held in position by four tugs between the Fawley refinery and Hamble point. The vessel had departed Southampton that day for the port of Le Havre at 11:30 local time....
https://insurancemarinenews.com/insurance-marine-news/marine-accident-round-up-30th-january-2023/
Asia coast storms in Pacific cause several ship accidents
The storms along the Pacific coast in Asia last week not only caused the loss of the Jin Tian (see above story) and the grounding of general cargo ship Xin Hai Zhou 2 (IMO 9507104) (IMN, January 26th) but also...
New probe into 1994 sinking of the Estonia reveals construction flaws
Officials have said that a new investigation into the sinking of the ferry Estonia in the Baltic Sea in 1994, which claimed 852 lives, had revealed flaws in its bow visor construction that had been missed during its certification. They said that if the examination had been carried out the...
New app for evidence gathering from North
North P&I Club has launched a mobile app which it said would make easier the gathering of evidence. It said that the app would make the collecting of evidence on incidents faster, easier and more accurate, while enhancing reporting consistency in future claims. “The MRCE Handbook” app from North...
https://insurancemarinenews.com/insurance-marine-news/new-app-for-evidence-gathering-from-north/
New Indian rules on ship ages unlikely to have much impact on global merchant fleet:research
Athens, Greece-based Xclusiv Shipbrokers has broken down what the new Indian rules on ship ages (IMN, January 25th) will mean in practice, and have concluded that they will probably have only a tiny effect on the global merchant fleet. The new proposed rules will mean that no bulk carrier, tanker...
Disabled container ship to be towed across Pacific for repairs
Container ship GSL Eleni (IMO 9285677), which suffered a rudder jam on December 29th, was moved to Seattle, Washington State, on January 18th in order to offload containers on board. It was reportedly being planned to tow the ship to China for repairs. Meanwhile the rudder was locked in position....
Smooth Sea 22 was not the ship it claimed to be
When Thai-flagged oil products tanker Smooth Sea 22 (IMO 9870991) suffered an explosion and a subsequent fire on January 17th, few realized that the event would expose a case of potential ship-identity fraud. On January 24th the International Maritime Organization was reported to have declared the...